


X-Avatar

by thelistening



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Lab, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, Korra and Asami are mutants, Smut, X-men Inspired
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-20
Updated: 2019-02-18
Packaged: 2019-05-26 03:20:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14991644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thelistening/pseuds/thelistening
Summary: Legend of Korra lightly fused with X-men: Korra is a telepath, Asami can control magnetic fields, apart from that it's just Avatar in a modern/sciencey AU. & things get gay.





	1. Throw me no bones and I will tell you no lies

**Author's Note:**

> Ok this is my first attempt at writing fanfic, hope you like it! I'll post chapter by chapter. I would love some constructive feedback/comments. Chapter titles inspired by some favourite song lyrics (songs posted in chapter notes).

 

Standing in line for the Island Ferry, Korra was giddy. What a feeling. The grin on her face was stupid, she knew - it was not a usual thing for one to be this grinny on the morning commute. But of course most commuters hadn't connected with the spirit world the night before. The goddamn _spirit world_.

Of course, most people couldn't.

Telepathic abilities were among the rarer mutations, and even then, connecting with an _energy,_ rather than a physical being, was definitely not a thing.

"Come on," she willed. The ferry was moving much too slow. Korra fidgeted with the zipper on her worn out Demin jacket. Zipping and unzipping, zipping and unzipping.  Clear skies overhead, her brown leather-banded watch caught loose rays of morning sun and casually threw them out onto the calm blue-green water. Future University's Department of Spirit Science was located on the historic Air Temple Island, which was not so far off the mainland. Korra could see the lab's north-facing wall of windows, lights already on.

"Come _on_."

Much, _much_ too slow.

The lab was Korra's happy place. The science was fascinating, but it was mostly the loveable gang of nerds she worked with that made her never want to leave. They mostly talked science, something Korra was good at and thus enjoyed. She often took the morning shift, preferring to finish the bulk of her experiments before the rest of the lab strolled in, which was usually just in time for lunch. Lunch ran directly into their unofficially-scheduled coffee break – it made them look lazy, they knew. But in that 2-hour-or-so "break" was when ideas were conceived and nurtured, and sometimes, when they happened upon a semi-reasonable one, born and raised. So really, there were no mid-day breaks in the Tenzin lab. There was work and there was thinking about work. With coffee.

Korra half-ran up the front steps. Bubbling, giggly sounds escaped her as she made her way to the lab. _What the…? No. Stop that._ She had a full, respectable laugh. This was unacceptable. _Calm the fuck down._

Like that was going to happen.

Korra entered the lab at speed, throwing her weight back the way she came and skidding to a stop. The lab was open and bright; white walls on white floors, with rows of cluttered black benchtops dividing the large space into smaller 4-member bays. Korra, Mako and Bolin shared a bay at the back of the lab. The vacant fourth desk was currently occupied by some extra spirit vine samples – no longer needed for science, they would live out their lives as decor – but that would soon change with the impending arrival of a new student. Large windows lined the far end of the room, and Korra could see the ferry making its way back to the mainland. She tried to contain herself, forcing her lips together into what she hoped was a casual grin. The result was a no-teeth-all-gums monstrosity of a smile.

Mako looked up from his box of spirit worms. "Er, what are you doing with your face?"

"What?" Korra replied, brow furrowing in annoyance but still unable to suppress the grin. "That's just my face."

"Your face has never looked like that before..." He looked confused, contorting his eyebrows such that one of them was nearly lost in his thick mess of black hair. Korra looked past him and was pleased to see his ever-enthusiastic younger brother unpacking his laptop at his desk.

"Hey Bolin! Guess what!"

"Oh, hey Kor!" Bolin spun around in his chair and pushed off his desk to join in the morning talk. "Whoa, um, are you trying something new with your face? It's... not bad! Not really sure what you're going for, but I feel like you're nailing it!"

 _Oh for spirits’ sake_.

Korra closed her eyes. Normally she could share her mind easily, without any real focus; but she wanted him to really _feel_ this one. She took a deep breath and connected with Bolin, letting her experience flood both his mind and senses.

Bolin's jaw dropped. His green eyes were wide, moving frantically in their sockets as they absorbed the visual of the spirit world rather than his current physical reality. He saw a familiar yet different version of life, contained in a world that, in its components, was much like the one he knew – the grass still green, the sky still blue, the sun still making its morning rise – but with a glowing translucence, bursting at the seams with an abundance of light that spilled into their own opaque world in the form of the spirit vines and critters that their lab studied.

"Kor, what was...? There was so much... Hm. And the... " Korra's grin broke into a crooked, face-filling smile. Bolin was rarely at a loss for words. "Ohh..."

Almost there...

"OHH!" Bolin exclaimed. It finally clicked. "Oh wow, Korra! The spirit world! You were in it! It... it was in your _mind._ Or were you in its mind? Er, I might need a little help making sense of this one."

Korra chuckled and made her way back over to Mako as Bolin continued his confused rambling. In all honesty, Korra didn’t really understand much more than he did. Somehow, she had been able to use her telepathy to connect to? with? the spirit world. Or some aspect of it, she wasn't sure what, exactly. The energy of the spirit world was like nothing she had ever imagined:  a soft-edged brightness, bound together by lucid strings of light yet at the same time boundless by any real, physical measure. She'd make a point never to tell the Physics Department about it.

As she shared the spirit world with Mako she felt a tug at the edges of her mind. Curious, Korra's mind wandered. It was a person. Someone she hadn't met before. Cautiously, she allowed herself to probe the contours of this mysterious mind. It was easy to be nosey as a telepath, but Korra had placed a strict rule on herself to never invade a person's mind without permission. She, herself, was a pretty private person, so this had never been a difficult rule to follow. But this time...

 _Oh boy_.

The temptation was real. As she navigated the surface of the unknown mind, Korra had to fight to stay afloat. She had never encountered a mind quite like this - gritty but with a smooth confidence, like the gears of a freshly tuned bike. The draw to probe deeper, to know everything about this person, was unsettling.

_Let go._

She knew it was wrong. She wanted to stop, but she needed to know more. (Or was it the other way around?)

_That's enough._

Her will was strong...

_I shouldn't._

…but her inquiring mind was relentless.

_Just a quick-_

In that moment the door to the lab swung open, startling all three labmates. Korra sat down in the nearest chair and rubbed her temples.

"Korra, what the fuck was that?" Mako asked incredulously. It took Korra a second to remember that she had been connected to Mako during her little telepathic adventure.

"Shit. Sorry, Mako. I- I got distracted, " Korra replied. And then, remembering what had caused that distraction, she turned to the door. "I think our new lab member might be here."

Although the door was still being held open, the doorway remained oddly empty. Bolin leaned onto the arm of his chair, slowly stroking his chin between his forefinger and thumb. "Is this new person invisible or did that door just magically open on its own?"

As if in response to his question, in walked an unfamiliar girl in blue jeans and a graphic t-shirt.  She was a few inches taller than Korra and slim, with dark hair that lightly waved down to her shoulders. With a leather jacket draped over one arm and a large coffee in the other hand, she used some unseen force to swing the door shut behind her with a slight flick of her head. _Ah, so she’s also a mutant of some sort._ And there it was again, that strong pull, daring Korra to sell out on her self-imposed rule. _Steady now_ , she willed herself.

"Hi, I'm looking for the Tenzin lab." Her voice was a compelling melody that would be stuck in Korra's head for days.

"You've come to the right place!" Bolin chirped excitedly. "The three of us share this bay and we've got an empty desk with your name on it! Why don't you go ahead and ditch your bag and we'll show you around? Just give me a sec to get these vines out of the way. I'm Bolin by the way, and this is my brother Mako and our labmate Korra."

"I'm Asami. It's nice to finally meet you guys. Tenzin has told me a lot about the lab."

Korra smiled politely before making what she hoped was a casual exit from the lab. Needing to refocus, she made her way down the hall to one of the smaller rooms where they housed the lab's collection of spirit worms. She pulled a random container of worms out of the incubator and placed it under the microscope with no intention of doing anything with them. Better to look busy than have to explain what she was thinking about to anyone that might walk in. 

 _Asami_.

_Well shit._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title inspiration:  
> Never Ending Circles - Chvrches


	2. We are made of our smallest thoughts, like I always was

_Korra sat in a tall lab chair, absentmindedly spinning in the seat, side to side, as she stared through the eyepiece of the microscope. She was back in the worm room, casually watching spirit worms mosey around in their container. “You know, you guys have it pretty good,” she said aloud, with only the spirit worms there to hear. “I’ve seen what goes on in your heads. Boy is it ever quiet in there.”_

_The spirit worms ignored her – not intentionally, but because they were worms and worms didn’t usually interact with people._

Hmm, maybe I was a little harsh, _she thought._

_“Sorry guys, I didn’t mean anything by it. I’m actually kinda jealous of you; you just swim around, day after day, without a care in the world. I’ve been trying to turn my mind off all day. It keeps asking questions, seeking answers where it shouldn’t. I thought hiding in here would help but I haven’t been able to get her out of my head for even a second. I mean, can you blame me? She’s beautiful on the outside, sure, but there’s so much more- “_

_Korra’s monologue was cut short by the door opening. “Oh, sorry Korra, I didn’t mean to interrupt,” said Asami as she stood in the doorway. Then she took in the room, “Were you just talking to your spirit worms?”_

_“Hey! Asami!” Korra exclaimed, hoping her phoney enthusiasm would mask her embarrassment. “Er, no, I- I was just practising… a talk! Yea, I want to give Tenzin an update on my experiments so, you know, I thought I’d put together a talk for him.” Korra sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck and made a point of avoiding eye contact. She was flustered, and it could not have been more obvious._

_Asami took a few steps toward Korra, “Well, I’d be happy to listen...”_

_The words were innocent but something about the way she spoke them piqued Korra’s interest. Were those hints of – surely, she was imagining it – lust that carried in her voice?_

_Without warning Korra’s chair punched across the small room as if drawn by some invisible force, and stopped abruptly with it’s backrest against Asami’s hip. Asami leaned forward and gripped the seat of the chair on either side of Korra’s thighs. Korra could feel the heat radiating off Asami’s hovering body. Her scent was intoxicating._

_“Or maybe we could do something else?” Asami continued suggestively._

_The words were barely more than a sultry breath on the back of Korra’s neck. Her whole body shivered. Was this happening? She wanted this. Her mind had been craving it from the second it first sensed Asami’s presence. The growing wetness between her thighs meant her body longed for it, too._

Whoa, Korra, you’re getting way ahead of yourself, _she thought silently. She closed her eyes, needing a second to think logically about the situation._ Maybe she’s not being all sexy on purpose... maybe she just always sounds like that. Or maybe it is on purpose and now I’m making her feel silly. Spirits, Korra, say something you idiot!

_“Er, I’m up for whatever?”_

_It was about as neutral a thing as she could have said, but a green light nonetheless._

_Asami swung the chair around and bestrode Korra’s lap. With Asami so close, instinct finally took over. Korra wrapped both arms around Asami’s body, filling her hands with her curves and hoisting her forward so their breasts touched through their shirts. Asami’s head fell backward, eyes closed and mouth agape, as she accepted Korra’s hold. Korra was strong, her body toned, and she wanted Asami to know every inch of it. She slid her hands upward – the throbbing ache between her legs gave her a confidence she didn’t know she had – and explored the smooth surface of Asami’s stomach as she navigated her way up to her chest. She slipped her right hand under the lace of Asami’s bra and took in the warmth of her breast. Asami followed suit, running her hands up Korra’s sculpted back and unclipping her bra in a fluid motion. Korra’s breasts fell forward with the give of her bra and Asami let out an audible breath at the sight of them loose beneath Korra’s tee._ She wants me _, the thought alone was nearly enough to tip Korra over the edge. The lust was seeping through to her jeans now. She ran her left hand though Asami’s long, dark hair and pulled her in for a rough kiss. As their mouths came together their lips came apart and Korra tasted the subtle sweetness of Asami’s tongue. Needing to taste more, she pulled Asami’s head to one side and kissed her down the length of her neck, sucking hard as she went. Asami groaned in hot pleasure. With her lips never leaving Asami’s skin, Korra replaced both her hands on Asami’s waist and shifted her weight, rocking her right thigh as Asami straddled it, thrusting in-time. She could feel Asami’s damp pulse against her leg and imagined how that slick want would feel around her fingers. How it would taste on her tongue. How it would resonate in her mind if she could just connect with Asami and bring her the release she so obviously needed. Korra belatedly became aware of a faint beeping sound – had she set a timer for her experiments? – but nothing could pull her away from Asami, not when she needed her like this. She wanted to feel Asami’s body shudder, feel the relief flood her mind as she reached her climax. And Korra would follow. She was so close. She would lose herself, just like this, any second-_

_(BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP)_

Korra awoke with a start.

She sat up abruptly. It took a few moments for her brain to register that she was in her room. Her sheets – much like her mind at the moment – were a jumbled mess. The alarm on her phone was still going off, already a full minute past it’s set time. _So the beeping was real_ , she thought as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. The wetness between her spread legs was real, as well. The rest, however:

“Ugh spirits, that was some dream.” She flopped back down on her pillow and threw her arms out to her sides. Her heartrate was through the roof. _Breathe_. She took a deep breath and tried to clear her mind. It was an ambitious task, and one that was always destined to fail.

Hazy morning light filtered in through the sheer lavender drapes that covered the floor-to-ceiling windows to the right of her bed. They contrasted nicely against the soft green of her bedroom walls – the room’s colours had always had a calming effect on her. A cool breeze flowed in through the open window, rustling the drapes, and Korra caught a glimpse of the grey overcast skies outside.

 _Hm, a quick run might help shake off this adrenaline_. As she got out of bed, pulling a sports bra over her head, she called out, “Naga! Come ‘ere girl!” There was a bustle of excitement – frantic scratching sounds echoed from the hall as Naga’s paws struggled to grip the slippery hardwood floors – and moments later her polar bear-sized dog came barging into her room, tail in full swing.

“Hey girl, how about a morning run?” Naga responded with a thunderous bark and skipped in circles around the room as Korra threw on a pair of jogging shorts.

“OK! OK!” Korra laughed, giving Naga a scruff behind the ears. “Let’s go!”

They made their way down two flights of stairs and exited into the alleyway beside the building. Before taking off, Korra took a second to text Bolin:

               > Hey Bo, gonna work from home today. Got some reading to catch up on. See ya tomorrow!

Korra crouched down to Naga’s level, “What do you say girl, race you to the park?” Naga bolted from the alleyway before Korra had a chance to clip on her leash, and Korra sprinted after her, her mind already preoccupied with catching her run-away dog.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title inspiration:  
> Make Them Gold - Chvrches  
> Clearest Blue - Chvrches


	3. I can’t expect the hard curves but come and stumble

Bolin sat slouched back in his chair, two hands on his protruding belly – in other words, his usual post-lunch position.

“I think I might’ve overdone it on the sushi,” he groaned.

Mako gave him a stern look, “Bolin, you do this _every time_. When are you going to learn?” He knew this was a stupid question – the answer, of course, was never – but he wasn’t about to pass up the chance to nag his baby brother.

Korra folded her arms on the table in front of her and placed her head down on the makeshift pillow. “I’m with you, Bo. What’s the point of going out for all-you-can-eat sushi if you’re not going to eat all you can?” She raised an accusatory eyebrow at Mako, ignoring the mild discomfort she felt in her stomach.  

OK, extreme discomfort.

“Yea, well, good luck getting any work done this afternoon,” Mako shot back, casually stuffing one last spicy salmon roll into his mouth. Korra and Bolin gagged a little at the sight of him still eating.  “You guys can’t even sit up straight. _I_ am perfectly satisfied and still fully functional.”

“Eh, it’s Saturday,” Bolin reasoned. “Besides, me and Korra were thinking of heading out early today to grab a coffee at this new café in the city, wanna join?

Mako rustled some cash out of his wallet as he answered his brother, “Nah, I’ve got a bunch of experiments to get going. Tenzin has been busting my balls on this project,” he placed his elbow onto the table and slumped his head into his hand, trying to look irritated. “He thinks we’ll be able to publish it in a top tier journal.”

Bolin could practically smell the pride oozing off him.

“Yea, yea, whatever you say, Mr. I’ve-got-the-best-project,” Bolin wrapped his right arm around Korra’s neck and yanked her up from her nap, smushing their faces together. Korra’s expression was almost precisely the inverted image of Bolin’s broad grin. “You enjoy working your butt off while me and Korra enjoy a little _me time._ Er, us time?” he took Korra’s shrug as confirmation, “ _Us time._ ”

Mako rolled his eyes while Korra struggled to extricate herself from her friend’s grasp. “Alright, let’s get going,” Korra said, pushing her chair away from the table. “I could really use that coffee.”

The three of them made their way back to the lab, the all-you-can-eaters lagging slightly behind Mako. It was a beautiful, sunny day out – the comfortable warmth of the day did nothing to motivate their walk back to the crisp, air-conditioned research tower. Daydreams of sitting out on the café patio sipping a coffee floated through Korra’s mind. She took a glance into Bolin’s mind, curious to see what experiments he still had to do. _What the?_ Inside Bolin’s head there was precisely nothing; it was a literal void, contrasting harshly against the chatter of minds surrounding them. _Huh, maybe he did eat too much,_ she thought to herself. _I guess Mako was right…_

She shook that thought out of her head – words she would never say.

Korra gave Bolin a bump on the arm, startling him out of his high-functioning slumber. “You know, I don’t really have much work to do this afternoon. Any chance I can help out with some of your stuff, so we can get out of here even earlier?”

“Really? Heck, that’d be awesome!” Bolin paused for a moment, pursing his lips and looking up at the sky, stroking his chin thoughtfully. “Let’s see… I’ve got a few experiments to wrap up in the lab, but I can handle those. Would you mind collecting a bunch of spirit worms for my next round of experiments? It’s kind of a boring task, sorry. It would save me so much time though!”

“Yea sure, that doesn’t sound so bad,” Korra replied. “How many worms do you need?”

“Hmm…maybe around…8….”

“8? You only need 8 wo-”

“Hundred or so.”

“800!” Korra face-palmed, instantly regretting her offer. “Are you serious?”

Bolin did his best puppy dog impression, “Please, Korra, please! I just _hate_ counting spirit worms. I always get distracted by all the pretty colours and lose track and then I need to start over and then I lose track again and you said you wanted to help so we could get coffee sooner and if I do it you just know it’s gonna take forever because of my whole problem with counting worms that I just told you about- “

“Spirits, fine! I’ll do it, just shut up already,” Korra resigned. “But coffee is on you today.”

“Deal!” Bolin skipped ahead, opening the door to the research tower and waving Korra through. “After you.”

Korra rolled her eyes and walked into the building; the wall of cool air that welcomed her was motivation to finish up quickly and get back outside. She hit the elevator button and was surprised to hear the near instantaneous _DING_ of the elevator arriving. _Right, Saturday._ Not having to wait an eternity for the elevator was a main reason they bothered to work on weekends. Korra struggled to keep her eyes open as the elevator made its ascent; the full weight of the food in her stomach was making itself known in her eyelids. She rubbed her eyes as the elevator doors opened and brought up the right flank as the three of them made their way down the hall toward the lab.

“800 spirit worms coming right up,” the words were muffled as they battled for air time with an impressive yawn. Korra diverged from Bolin and Mako and made her way a little further down the hall to the spirit worm room. Another yawn – _this is going to be a real struggle_ , Korra thought as reached for the door handle.

The door was only a few inches open when her mind shot to attention. It took a moment for her eyes to catch up – through the window in the door, she saw Asami sitting at the microscope.

Asami.

And Korra.

Here. In the worm room.

Visions from her lust-driven dream began filling her mind. Korra could feel the heat building in her cheeks. How had she failed to sense her sooner? She thought back to the cause of her tired awareness: _Damn it, Mako. I really hate when you’re right._

At the sound of the door, Asami glanced up at the entrance to the small room. “Oh hey, Korra,” she said with a welcoming smile and a friendly wave. Her face was glowing, but not nearly as much as the brilliant energy Korra was sensing from her mind, which – was it her imagination? – seemed to perk up at the sight of Korra. “How’s it going? I haven’t seen you around in a while.”

With one hand still on the door handle, Korra rubbed the back of her neck and awkwardly leaned against the door, stumbling into the room as it gave way.

“Yea I, uh, had a bunch of reading to do,” _spirits, Korra, keep your cool._ “Thought I’d work from home for a few days to catch up.”

Asami turned back to the microscope as she continued the conversation, “Nice. It’s great that Tenzin doesn’t mind us working from home sometimes. He seems pretty easy going.”

“Oh yea, he’s pretty chill,” Korra glanced down at her watch, not bothering to take in the time. “Anyway, I should probably get some actual experiments done…” She let out an awkward chuckle to mask the tumult of her mind and turned to leave.

“Didn’t you come in here for something?” Asami looked up again, eyebrow raised as a dubious look – Korra would convince herself later that it was “just confusion” – crossed her face.

“Oh right!” Korra’s eyes frantically swept the room, “I needed…”

_What? A pen? No, that’s dumb._

“…to get…”

_A lab coat? No, no, there are a bunch in the lab!_

“…this!”

She took a few steps over to the black benchtop that Asami was working at and squatted to pick up – _humph! –_ a 5-gallon carboy of spirit worm water. She stood back up with the carboy between her legs and waddled over to the door, which swung open for her just before she got there.

“You looked like you could use a hand.” Asami smiled and Korra’s strong grip on the carboy weakened substantially. She threw a crooked grin to Asami as a thank you and focused all her attention on leaving the room and _definitely not_ diving into the beautiful mind that kept spilling over her. As the door swung shut, Korra felt the mood behind her settle into a mild disappointment as Asami’s mind continued to tug at hers. _Spirits, that could’ve gone better._

Korra made her way back down the hall to the lab, resolving to not dwell on the wants of her unruly mind. She placed the carboy on Bolin’s bench with a thud before slumping into the chair at her desk.

“Er, what’s this for?” Bolin asked. He stood pointing at the carboy as confusion pulled at his face.

Korra sighed, “Sorry, Bo. I can’t count spirit worms for you today.”

Bolin sagged into his chair. He threw his head back and let his arms fall limp to his sides before proceeding to sigh a sigh that went on for an unreasonable number of seconds. “Aw man, I’m never going to finish!” He groaned dramatically. Perhaps he should’ve been an actor rather than a scientist.

Mako looked up from the paper he was reading at his desk and swivelled around in his chair to face Korra, “Hah! I told you you shouldn’t’ve eaten so much. It’s impossible to work after that much food.”

“Oh, shut up, Mako,” Korra said, shooting him a dirty look. “Besides, it’s not that.”

“What is it then?” Mako pried.

“It’s,” Korra hesitated. “Asami’s in the worm room.”

The brothers both shot her identical looks of confusion. “So?” asked Bolin.

“ _So_ …” Korra started. “I- I had this… dream.”

“A dream?” It was Mako’s turn to press, “About… Asami?”

“Yea,” Korra admitted, then she lowered her voice to a whisper and added, “it was, you know… a sexy dream.”

Mako’s jaw dropped. Bolin inhaled a drawn-out gasp as his face underwent the slow transition from confusion to wide-eyed disbelief. Once the words had finally sunk in, he shot Korra a sideways glance and pumped his eyebrows, “Sounds like _someone’s_ got a thing for the new girl.”

“Shut it, Bolin!” Korra shot back at him.

He shut his mouth, but his eyebrows were still doing the thing.

“Cut it out before I cut _them_ out,” Korra threatened, gesturing to his jumpy eyebrows.

“Ok! Ok!” Bolin yielded with his hands in the air. He pushed off his bench and rolled in his chair over to the end of the bay where Korra and Mako sat. Giving Korra a nudge with his elbow, he said, “I guess you could say she’s a real “chick magnet”, huh?”

Bolin burst into laughter at his own joke and even Mako snickered. _Chick magnet? What’s that supposed to mean? Are there a bunch of other girls interested in her? How would an idiot like Bolin know that?_

Bolin wiped a single tear from his eye. “Ah, I really nailed that one,” he said while trying but mostly failing to suppress his giggles.

“Bo, you know you’re not the first person to come up with the term ‘chick magnet’, right?” Korra pointed out.

“Well, yea, but that’s not the joke- Oh, wait a minute! You don’t know!”

“Don’t know what?”

“You don’t know why that’s funny!”

“Er, right.”

“It’s Asami’s mutation; she can control magnetic fields! She can pick up all sorts of metal objects and move them around telekinetically. She showed us yesterday when she was helping Wu – you know, that really annoying guy from the Kuvira lab? Well, yesterday we saw him locking his bike up outside and the front wheel was all busted. He must’ve crashed pretty bad to do that much damage: spokes every which way, frame all bent. But Asami fixed it! She just waved her hand around a little and straightened everything up – she was literally _bending_ metal! But anyway, where was I? Chick magnet, right. So, you’re a chick and you’re attracted to her, like a magnet… because her mutation…” Bolin’s face flattened, “it sounds dumb when I have to explain it.”

And yet Korra was laughing, partly at Bolin’s explanation and partly at his joke, which, much to her surprise, was actually sort of clever.

“Ah, alright, that’s enough joking around. How do you feel about just finishing up whatever you’re doing and heading over to the café?” Korra asked Bolin. “I’m sort of dying to get out of here. I _promise_ I’ll count those worms for you on Monday.”

“Fine, fine. But I hope you know this is not going to be a relaxing coffee break,” Bolin warned with a smirk on his face. “I want to know _everything_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title inspiration:   
> Drive My Soul - Lights  
> River - Lights


	4. You can't deny and I can't deny

“The usual?”

“You know it.”

“Two Southern blend lattes coming right up.”

Korra made her way to the far end of the service counter to wait for their drinks. The place was hopping – not surprising for a crisp Sunday morning in the city. While there was no shortage of coffee shops in the downtown core, none were quite as hip and homey as the Bending Bean. With its grainy hardwood floors, deep brown leather chairs and live-edge service counter, the cozy café had built up quite a following in its first month of business. Also, the coffee was great.

Korra stretched her arms up over her head. “I guess we’re regulars now, eh Bo?” she said, leaving her hands folded atop the orange beany that hung loosely off her head.

“I’m so impressed that she remembers our drinks when we’ve only been coming here for a few weeks! Isn’t she just great?” Bolin propped his elbow up on the industrial-sized expresso machine and slouched his head into his hand.

“You’re doing it again, Bo,” Korra warned.

“Hm?”

“The dreamy eyes. Quit making eyes at her or you’ll freak her out.”

Bolin turned to face Korra, leaning back against the counter with his arms firmly crossed in front of him. “Oh? And what do you know about how to behave around pretty girls?” His eyebrows scrunched together in a you’ve-got-to-be-kidding-me kind of way.

Korra rolled her eyes. “That’s totally different and you know it,” she threw back at him with a scowl.

“I know no such thing,” Bolin stated matter-of-factly. “You’ve been nothing but flustered whenever Asami’s around. And not to mention how rude you are, always running out of the room the second she shows up. _I_ , on the other hand, am politely admiring a beautiful barista as she effortlessly coerces _this_ ” – grand gesture – “ _beast_ of a machine into producing a perfectly smooth latte made with only the finest beans I’ve ever-”

“Order up!” Bolin froze mid-rant. Rosy embarrassment flooded his cheeks as the beautiful barista stood across the counter holding two steaming lattes. “Didn’t mean to interrupt,” she added with a wink.

“Oh! N- no worries! I was just… er, you know me, rambling about this and that. What a gorgeous day we’re having! And… and the temperature in here is just perfect. Very comfortable.” Bolin put on a sheepish smile as his eyes shifted over to Korra, begging for rescue.

Feeling the second-hand embarrassment, Korra reached across the wooden counter and accepted the drinks, “Thanks, Opal. Don’t mind him, he gets nervous around pretty girls.”

Bolin’s jaw dropped. Korra put one of the coffee cups in his hand and gently guided his unresponsive body toward a table by the front windows. After exploring different seating options during their first few visits, they’d agreed that this was the best spot. The table itself was sturdy – knee-high and made of reclaimed barn board; it held an old school charm. It was nestled comfortably in a three-sided nook consisting of the large store-front window and two book shelves that extended perpendicularly into the café.  The shelves were home to bags of coffee beans of all sorts of roasts and blends, from all sorts of nations. Cushy leather seats caught the warmth through the window and held the smooth blend of aromas radiating off the shelves. Korra kicked back into the soft leather, closed her eyes and took a deep breath, inhaling the warming aromas.

“Feeling relaxed?” Bolin asked from his own cushy chair across the table.

“Yup,” Korra replied. “ _So_ relaxed.”

“Good, good…” Bolin said absentmindedly as his thumbs began dancing across the screen of his phone.

Korra continued her half-nap, “This place is so calming, you know?”

_Buzz buzz._ Bolin spoke as he replied to a text: “Yep, just… at… the… café.”

“Yea the café, its so peaceful here. I could sit here forever,” Korra stammered on.

_Buzz buzz._ Again, Bolin typed aloud: “Sure, we’ll… definitely… still… be here… in 10… minutes.”

“What?” Korra looked to her friend, “Do you need to take off soon? Bo?”

“Hm? Oh sorry, I was just texting a friend. I’m not in any rush to leave, let’s stay a while.” _Buzz buzz._ A smirk crossed Bolin’s face as he read the new message.

Korra’s brain sprung to life. A moment later she was sitting on the edge of her chair, hands tightly gripping the arm rests. Posture: predatory. “Who are you texting?”

“Oh, no one…” Bolin replied in an intentionally suspicious tone.

“You didn’t…”

“Didn’t I?”

“ _Did_ you?”

“Did I what?”

“You did!”

“Did I?”

“Bo,” Korra closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “This doesn’t end well for you.”

“Hm?” He casually crossed his legs and tucked his phone into the breast pocket of his flannel shirt.

“The second we step outside,” Korra paused to take a sip of her latte. “I’m gonna wreck you.”

“Oh please Kor, I’m doing you a favour here. Besides, _you’re_ the _jerk_ who embarrassed _me_ in front of _Opal_. This really is the _least_ I could do.”

“Oh so _I_ embarrassed _you,_ did I? I only jumped in because _you_ were embarrassing _yourself_ by talking about the weather _inside the café_ like a total _dumb_ -”

Korra suddenly found herself at a loss for words, the concept of speech momentarily forgotten as a familiar presence drew her attention away from her friend and into the ever-present telepathic network surrounding her. She looked out the window to her left and was not surprised to see Asami standing across the street, patiently awaiting a green light. She looked like autumn in human form: worn-out black skinny jeans tucked into a pair of burgundy high-top sneakers, topped by a graphic tee largely hidden beneath her black leather jacket, with a loosely-draped scarf of yellows and oranges wrapped messily within her jacket collar. _Spirits, can’t you just look shitty? Just once?_ Korra’s pulse quickened as Asami neared the café.

A few panicky moments later – rather too soon as far as Korra was concerned – Asami was greeted by the soft jingle of bells as the door to the café opened. She quickly spotted Korra and Bolin and sent a friendly wave their way as she walked up to the counter. Korra sat back in her chair, eyes forward, and silently glared at Bolin.

Bolin broke the silence. “You should really be thanking me.”

…

“You can’t just keep avoiding her forever.”

…

“You know, this grumpy wolfbat face you’ve got going here is not a flattering look for you.”

“YOU DON’T THINK I KNOW THAT?”

Korra closed her eyes and rubbed at the crease that had developed between her eyebrows. “I really like her, Bo. It’s not that I don’t _want_ to talk to her. I just get so nervous…”

“What’s there to be nervous about? Sure, she’s a catch. But you’re a catch, too! And what do two catches do?” He held out both his hands, as though demonstrating a very simple concept to a toddler. “They catch,” he began, as he brought his hands together. “ _…each other_.”

With all her anger and nerves Korra couldn’t help but let an amused snort escape her. “Bo, you really are an idiot sometimes.”

_But I guess you’re not wrong, either,_ she admitted to herself.

A beat-up metal chair gently floated toward them and landed by the table opposite the window. Korra took a deep breath, _OK Korra, you’re an adult, time to start acting like one._

“Mind if I join you guys?” Asami asked from a few paces away. She shrugged off her jacket and tossed it onto the back of her chair. She left on her scarf, which Korra could see now was a swirling mess of fall colours that emanated from a centrally-printed tree. The tree looked overgrown, with knotted branches and tangles of browning, lifeless-looking vines hanging from it. From its size and shape, it somewhat resembled a dormant version of the ever-growing trees of the Spirit Wilds. It had no leaves; Korra noticed that the eddy of colours could be traced back to single-coloured rays of light that shot out from where the leaves should have been. It was really quite pretty.

Asami didn’t wait for a reply before taking her seat in the cozy nook. She sat cross-legged and slouched forward, propping her elbows up on her knees. She gave off an air of confidence that always seemed to leave Korra feeling nervous and slightly out of breath.

_Alright keep it cool. You’re confident, too. I mean, maybe not right now, but usually. Sit up straight and pretend for a bit. You got this. Say something, though. No ones saying anything... Just say something nice and pretend to be cool._

“Hey, uh,” Korra started. Asami and Bolin both looked over to her. She avoided Bolin’s gaze. “I, uh... I like your scarf.”

“Oh thanks!” Asami beamed and Korra felt her nerves ease a little. She liked making Asami smile, she realized. “I was actually just thinking how I really like the beany look on you.”

A crooked grin spread across Korra’s face as she rubbed the back of her neck; she had never really figured out how to gracefully accept a compliment. As an awkward silence settled into the cozy nook Korra turned her attention back to her latte and soundlessly willed Bolin to fill the dead air. True to form, Bolin piped up about something or other and he and Asami brought the volume back up to a comfortable level.

Korra took in hardly a word. Taking a long sip of the smooth Southern warmth, she hid her persistent grin behind her coffee cup. The beany would have to become a permanent fixture.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title inspiration:  
> High enough to carry you over - Chvrches


End file.
